The Court of Appeals has sustained the dismissal by the Office of the Ombudsman of the graft charges filed against former Palawan Gov. Joel Reyes and several others for allowing small-scale mining activities in the province based on a revised environmentally critical areas network zoning map.
In a 15-page decision, the CA’s Special First Division through Associate Justice Romeo Barza ruled that there was no grave abuse of discretion on the part of the anti-graft body when it dismissed the complaint filed against Reyes and several other officials of the province.
Besides Reyes, also cleared by the Ombudsman were David Ponce de Leon, former Palawan vice governor; Lucena Demaala, former mayor of Narra, Palawan; Bayani Agapito, Janet Goh, Sunny Batul, Randolf Pe, Lilia Amarez, Arlie Deles, Tomas Tabinga, Eferino Genovea, members of the Sanguniang Bayan of the Municipality of Narra; Abraham Kahlil Mitra, former Palawan 2nd district representative; Antonio Alvarez, former member of the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development; Alfreddo Abueg Jr., presidential assistant for Mimaropa/PCSD member; Romero Dorado, executive director of PCSD; Joselito Cadlaon, Ernesto Llacuna, Gil Acosta, Modesto Rodriguez, Edmundo Balerite, Derrick Pablico, Vicky de Guzman, Alice Fabellon, Mark Dior Madamba, members of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Palawan.
In dismissing the complaint for Violation of Sec. 3 (e) of R.A. No. 3019 filed against the respondents, the Ombudsman found no “manifest partiality, evident bad faith or gross inexcusable negligence” in the performance of the respondents’ official duties, “which is presumed to have been regularly performed in the absence of evidence to the contrary.”
As regards to violation of Sec. 3 (j) of R.A. No. 3019, the Ombudsman did not find any evidence to prove the accusation of the petitioners that the respondents knowingly approved or granted any license, permit, privilege or benefit in favor of any person not qualified for or not legally entitled to such license, permit, privilege or advantages.
The Ombudsman held that no evidence was presented to prove that the applicants-mining companies are not entitled to the said mining permits which were granted to them.
The issuance of the permits for small-scale mining operations, according to the Ombudsman, was made in accordance with the ECAN Map and Strategic Environmental Plan for Palawan.
The appellate court agrees with the Office of the Ombudsman that without a judicial decision annulling the reclassification of the ECAN Map of the Municipality of Narra nor the SEP Clearance issued to the applicants-mining companies, the mining permits issued to the said mining companies remain to be “legal and regular. “
“The Ombudsman’s finding of probable cause, or lack of it, is entitled to great respect absent a showing of grave abuse of discretion. Besides, to justify the issuance of the writ of certiorari on the ground of abuse of discretion, the abuse must be grave, as when the power is exercised in an arbitrary or despotic manner by reason of passion or personal hostility, and it must be so patent as to amount to an evasion of a positive duty or to a virtual refusal to perform the duty enjoined, or to act at all in contemplation of law, as to be equivalent to having acted without jurisdiction,” the CA stressed.
The case stemmed from the petition filed by members of the Environmental Legal Assistance claiming that the areas applied for SEP clearance by Patricia Louise Mining and Development Corp., Palawan Alpha Resources Corp., San Juanico Nickel Mining Corp. and Narra Development Corp. are within areas classified as a “core zone” under the ECAN Map.
They said that under R.A. No. 7611, (An Act Adopting the Strategic Environmental Plan for Palawan (SEP Law), mining within core zone is strictly prohibited.
Petitioners believed that respondents who are members of PCSD violated the SEP Law when it issued SEP Clearance to the applicants covering the areas under the core zone.